Former Australian school principal accused of child sex abuse walks free in Israel

KIM LANDERS: An Israeli court has ruled against the extradition of a former principal wanted on child sex abuse charges in Australia.

Malka Leifer from Addas Israel School in Melbourne fled to Israel when accusations were first raised against her in 2008.

Manny Waks, who blew the whistle on alleged abuse in Melbourne's Jewish community, says this decision will outrage victims.

Rachael Brown reports.

RACHAEL BROWN: Former principal, Malka Leifer is wanted by Victoria Police on 74 charges of indecent assault and rape allegedly involving girls at the Adass Israel School in Melbourne.

When accusations were first made, she fled with her family to Israel in the middle of the night, allegedly with help from Melbourne Adass community.

Now a judge in Jerusalem has ruled Malka Leifer is mentally unfit to face extradition, until she completes psychiatric treatment that could go on for years.

Australian-Israeli victim advocate Manny Waks, who blew the whistle on abuse in Melbourne's Jewish community, says the defendant is playing the system.

MANNY WAKS: She claimed that she was getting panic attacks or the like around the time or coinciding with the hearing and then she recuperated magically and the day, or the afternoon after the hearing, suddenly she was well again.

And the judge noted these issues in one of his rulings. He was very clear that she was playing some games, and is somewhat surprised at today's developments as well.

RACHAEL BROWN: Malka Leifer's house arrest that's been in place for the past two years will be lifted.

Mr Waks again.

MANNY WAKS: Either she's fit for trial or she needs to be in an institution, looked after the whole time and when she recuperates and is well enough she then needs to be brought to justice.

RACHAEL BROWN: He says this saga gives legitimacy to the argument that Israel is becoming a safe haven for Jewish paedophiles.

MANNY WAKS: Because we have the law of return for any Jewish person from anywhere in the world that can immigrate to Israel with overseas citizenship and we've seen that in a number of institutes from the US, from the UK, from the Netherlands and from Australia.

RACHAEL BROWN: Robert Goot is the president of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry.

He says while he hasn't read the Israeli court's judgement, the council is very disappointed.

ROBERT GOOT: We express sympathy and support for the victims of her alleged offending and we welcome the views of the Australian ambassador Dave Sharma to Israel, who said that the Government was committed to seeing this woman extradited to Australia to face very serious child sex abuse charges.

And we understand that the decision of the Israeli state attorney's office is to appeal the decision of the district court, and we welcome that decision of the Israeli state attorney's office.

RACHAEL BROWN: How do you think victims will feel hearing that she was allegedly having panic attacks and can't come and face the charges that the horrible abuse that they allege?

ROBERT GOOT: I don't want to gainsay the expert psychiatric evidence, which I haven't seen but was before the district court although one is entitled to contrast her panic attack and alleged mental state with the suffering that has been inflicted on her victims and alleged victims.

KIM LANDERS: Robert Goot, president of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, ending that report by Rachael Brown.